Academic literature on the topic 'Nick Bontis'

The work of Nick Bontis divided into following categories 1. Intellectual capital management which refers to knowledge of a company's employees collectively. Dr. Nick develops a matrix of intellectual capital. 2. Organizational size and Knowledge flow, it describes the flow of information and technical knowledge with respect to learning. Dr. Nick explains the knowledge flow in up and down stream according to the size of organization 3. The organizational learning process in different setting e.g. Group learning and individual learning and their outcomes in diverse cultures. The group learning is more result oriented and cost effective instead of investing on individuals. 4. Managing organizational learning system Aligning Knowledge flow and stock of knowledge. 5. The theory of resource base view of the firms, describe the utilization of resources as competitive advantage. Resources are divided into tangible and non-tangible.  This writes up is an effort to explore the areas he has contributed.

Digital State at the Leading Edge, Sandford Borins, Kenneth Kernaghan, David Brown, Nick Bontis, Perri 6 and Fred Thompson, Toronto, Buffalo and London: University of Toronto Press, 2007, pp. 446.There is a small but dedicated community of scholars who work in the field of Canadian public administration. These researchers have produced research of outstanding interest and quality. Digital State at the Leading Edge is no exception to this rule; it is an excellent example of evidence-based research.

Intellectual Capital (IC) study began over 20 years ago. But little mapping of this study has been done. “How many IC articles have been published and cited?” This is vital for future IC research. This study's goal is to map 20 years of IC research bibliometrically. This is significant because IC has been shown to boost company performance, competitiveness, and welfare. Bibliometric analysis is used because it is quantifiable, objective, avoids potential subjective bias, and confirms expert opinions in the field of IC. The results showed 3993 IC articles between 2000-2020. English is the most extensively used language in publications, accounting for 95.04 percent. IC and competitive advantage, IC statement, and IC perspective are the most researched themes. Nick Bontis, James Guthrie, and John Dumay are the most prolific. This study's findings will be useful to future IC researchers.

El objetivo de este artículo es examinar el estado de la investigación sobre Capítal Intelectual en terminos del comportamiento del tema a los largo de las últimas dos decadas (1997- 2017), con sus variables capital humano, estructural y relacional, para lo cual se realizó un estudio bibliometrico basado en la base de datos de Scopus y teniendo en cuenta el volumen de producción a lo largo del periodo de estudio, el impacto de las publicaciones, journals y autores. El análisis muestra que el estudio en este tema ha incrementado en los últimos veinte años, destacando a Nick Bontis como el autor con mayor volumen de producción e impacto en el estudio del tema y da evidencia de la especialización de dos revistas en Reino Unido, especializados en capital intelectual. Los estudios sobre capital intelectual versan sobre tres áreas principales: la relación del capital intelectual con el desempeño empresarial, medición del capital intelectual y la relación con otras variables como creación de valor, gobierno corporativo, gestión del recurso humano, innovación, entre otros.

El objetivo de este artículo es examinar el estado de la investigación sobre Capítal Intelectual en terminos del comportamiento del tema a los largo de las últimas dos decadas (1997- 2017), con sus variables capital humano, estructural y relacional, para lo cual se realizó un estudio bibliometrico basado en la base de datos de Scopus y teniendo en cuenta el volumen de producción a lo largo del periodo de estudio, el impacto de las publicaciones, journals y autores. El análisis muestra que el estudio en este tema ha incrementado en los últimos veinte años, destacando a Nick Bontis como el autor con mayor volumen de producción e impacto en el estudio del tema y da evidencia de la especialización de dos revistas en Reino Unido, especializados en capital intelectual. Los estudios sobre capital intelectual versan sobre tres áreas principales: la relación del capital intelectual con el desempeño empresarial, medición del capital intelectual y la relación con otras variables como creación de valor, gobierno corporativo, gestión del recurso humano, innovación, entre otros.

Since its inception, the intellectual capital (IC) framework, which developed from accounting and financial perspectives, focused primarily on firm-level analysis. There have been several important attempts in the literature to take IC to the macroeconomic level. The purpose of this paper is to assess the relationship between national intellectual capital, proxied with modified National Intellectual Capital Index (NICI) introduced by Bontis [7], and the Human Development Index (HDI), which became an important alternative to the traditional single dimensional measure of a country's development, like the gross domestic product [42]. The paper proposes a modified NICI suggested by Užienė [52]. The analysis includes panel data regression analysis for 12 countries. The dataset incorporated longitudinal data for weighted components of the NICI index for the period of 21 years (2000-2021). The results revealed that each of the elements of NICI, namely National Human Capital (NHC), National Market Capital (NMC), National Process Capital (NPC), and National Renewal Capital (NRC), exhibits significant impact on the levels of HDI in the said period. However, all elements, apart from NRC, show significant positive impact on HDI, pointing to the conclusion that these factors represent an important foundation for achieving and maintaining national competitiveness. Contrariwise, NRC was revealed to have the significant negative impact on HDI, opening the door to the question whether NRC is a real driver of national development, or just the effect of already reached development level.

Actualmente en el área andina entre Ecuador y Bolivia hay numerosos intentos de producir un pensamiento propio que esté basado en las raíces indígenas (no-occidentales) de esa región. En general es una corriente políticamente vigorosa que procura recuperar las tradiciones culturales propias de origen prehispánico, incluida la filosofía. El resultado es a menudo un pensamiento colectivista con una tendencia política revolucionaria, anti-imperialista y anti-elitaria. La reconstrucción más importante de este pensamiento se debe a Josef Estermann. Es, al mismo tiempo, un esfuerzo por rechazar las concepciones racionalistas de Occidente. La filosofía andina resulta ser la reconstrucción algo artificial de una sabiduría colectiva acumulada y transmitida a través de muchas generaciones sin un factor autocrítico, lo que conduce a rasgos autoritarios y dogmáticos.

Tendo sido gestada e concluída inteiramente à sombra da atmosfera de exceção imposta pela pandemia do Coronavírus SARS-CoV-2, a presente edição da Revista Eletrônica da Procuradoria Geral do Estado do Rio de Janeiro – PGE-RJ configura-se um exemplo de que, ainda que sob condições adversas, e mesmo a partir de suas consequências, é mais do que necessário seguir pensando (e repensando) os rumos da Advocacia de Estado. É neste sentido que o Prof. Dr. Gustavo Binenbojm apresenta suas reflexões, no Editorial “Crise, oportunismo e o retorno da supremacia do interesse público: O pêndulo que não voltou”, em que desmistifica a suposta reafirmação da potestade do interesse público com decisões tomadas em tempos de pandemia, mas que, no entanto, apenas representam o exercício compartilhado da liberdade. Na seção Doutrina, Vanessa Cerqueira Reis prossegue na análise dos efeitos da pandemia em “O Princípio da Transparência e seus desafios na aplicabilidade orçamentária, e breves considerações sobre o Covid-19.” Eduardo Sobral Tavares apresenta-nos a “Dação em pagamento em bem imóvel como forma de extinção do crédito tributário: Requisitos mínimos para constitucionalidade da lei local”, enquanto, na sequência, Delcy Alex Linhares nos fala a respeito de “Arbitragem e mediação na falência e na recuperação de empresas.” Mauricio Jorge Pereira da Mota e Roberto Hugo da Costa Lins Filho tratam dos “Aspectos de incompatibilidade jurídica relacionados ao dever de imparcialidade nos processos administrativos nas procuradorias gerais dos municípios”, e Leonam Liziero discorre sobre “A proporcionalidade em desencanto: um problema acerca do significado de princípio.” Em Atualidades, Diogo dos Santos Baptista examina “A cobrança pela utilização exclusiva de faixa de domínio de rodovias estaduais por prestadores de serviço de energia elétrica”, e Luiza Rita Monteiro Paiva expõe uma análise sobre “A tributação do patrimônio imobiliário urbano no Brasil: Um estudo sobre a deterioração das finanças municipais.” Os pareceres de números 09/1990 e 30/2001 integram a seção Memória da Advocacia do Estado. No primeiro, o Procurador Marcos Juruena Villela Souto analisa a situação jurídica do sistema de transporte de bondes no bairro de Santa Teresa, no Rio de Janeiro. O segundo parecer apresenta os argumentos do Procurador Alexandre Santos Aragão acerca da discussão sobre os juros a serem adotados pelo Fundo de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social – FUNDES, instituído pelo Decreto-lei nº. 08/75, nos financiamentos realizados pelo Estado do Rio de Janeiro à iniciativa privada, no desenvolvimento da sua atividade de fomento. Por último, a Seção de Vídeos recupera trechos de alguns dos mais significativos eventos organizados e/ou patrocinados pela PGE-RJ, dentre eles dois painéis de debates do Seminário "Políticas Públicas na Contemporaneidade e seus Desafios", ocorrido em 4 de junho de 2018: o primeiro, composto por Maria Paula Dallari Bruci e Ulisses Schwartz, com mediação de Alice Voronoff; e o segundo, integrado por Ana Paula Barcellos e Rodrigo Mascarenhas, mediado por Fabiana Rudge.

W zakresie badań nad współczesnymi zmianami demograficznymi istnieje wiele dylematów metodologicznych. Jednym z nich jest zróżnicowanie progów wiekowych, przyjmowane w różnych dyscyplinach, jak również dziedzinach nauki. Przedmiotem rozważań w niniejszym opracowaniu jest analiza różnic podejść do granicy tzw. wieku senioralnego w ujęciu interdyscyplinarnym. Opracowanie ma stanowić odpowiedź na pytanie: kim jest, z chronologicznego punktu widzenia, osoba starsza dla ekonomistów, socjologów, demografów czy przedstawicieli nauk medycznych? Na podstawie studiów literaturowych, analizy porównawczej metodyki, publikowanych badań empirycznych, jak również w oparciu o praktykę rynkową podjęta zostanie próba określenia granicy wieku starszego w odniesieniu do badań nad zachowaniami nabywczymi osób starszych. Celem artykułu jest wykazanie braku spójności w podejściu do progu starości, zarówno w poszczególnych dyscyplinach, jak i w odniesieniu do węższego obszaru badawczego, jakim są starsi konsumenci. Obecny nurt jest bardzo zróżnicowany. Jako starszych konsumentów określa się osoby w wieku powyżej 50., 55., 60. czy 65. roku życia. Brak jest jednoznacznej podstawy w przyjmowaniu danej granicy (Bondos 2013: 31–36; UOKiK 2009; Bombol, Słaby 2011; Stroud, Walker 2013; Gunter 1998). Artykuł dowodzi, iż ujednolicenie podejścia w analizowanym aspekcie pozwoliłoby na większą dostępność badań porównawczych, danych statystycznych, a zatem bardziej dynamiczny rozwój nauki nad osobami starszymi jako konsumentami.

A natureza das ligações de hidrogênio e a influência destas interações na estrutura eletrônica de complexos neutros, catiônicos, aniônicos e radicalares foi estudada utilizando-se análises geométricas, energéticas, eletrônicas e topológicas. Inicialmente, verificaram-se alterações na aromaticidade do cátion pirílio após a complexação com uma a três moléculas de água. Tais complexos foram ainda estudados em meio reacional com constante dielétrica igual a da água com o emprego do modelo PCM (Polarizable Continuum Model). Adicionalmente, os efeitos da hidroxilação na estrutura eletrônica dos cátions benzopirílio e flavílio foram considerados. Posteriormente, analisaram-se os efeitos das fortes ligações de hidrogênio na ressonância do grupo carboxila em complexos formados entre o radical hidroperoxil e os ácidos fórmico, acético e trifluoroacético. Como extensão desse trabalho, estudos envolvendo complexos obtidos com e sem restrições na otimização de geometria possibilitaram obter informações a respeito da ressonância dos grupos carboxila e carboxilato quando o fluoreto de hidrogênio interage linear ou perpendicularmente com todos os átomos do ácido fórmico e do ânion formiato. O desenvolvimento das atividades supracitadas compreendeu a análise da função de onda pelos métodos NBO (Natural Bond Orbital), NSA (Natural Steric Analysis), NRT (Natural Resonance Theory) e AIM (Atoms in Molecules). As alterações em parâmetros geométricos e nas cargas atômicas foram consideradas. Uma análise energética foi realizada com o emprego do método de decomposição de energia proposto por Xantheas. As freqüências vibracionais e a intensidade das bandas do estiramento do grupo X-H, doador da ligação de hidrogênio, foram analisadas. As densidades de spin para os complexos radicalares também foram obtidas. A influência das ligações de hidrogênio e o efeito do substituinte na aromaticidade dos cátions foram verificados com o emprego dos métodos e índices NICS (Nucleus Independent Chemical Shifts), HOMA (Harmonic Oscillator Model of Aromaticity), HOSE (Harmonic Oscillator Stabilization Energy) e PDI (para-Delocalization Index). Os cálculos foram efetuados com os modelos B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p), B3LYP/6-311++G(3df,3pd) e UB3LYP/6-311++G(3df,3pd). Ocasionalmente, outras funções de base (EPR-III e cc-pVDZ), assim como o método MP2, foram utilizados para testar a confiabilidade dos resultados obtidos. As interações intermoleculares pouco alteraram a estrutura eletrônica e a aromaticidade do cátion pirílio. Analogamente, a substituição de um átomo de hidrogênio por um grupo hidroxila em diversas posições dos cátions benzopirílio e flavílio também não provocou modificações muito significativas na estrutura eletrônica desses cátions, embora tenha se verificado uma dependência da aromaticidade com a posição da hidroxila. Por outro lado, a distorção geométrica associada às ligações de hidrogênio foram responsáveis pelo incremento ou diminuição da ressonância do grupo carboxila nos ácidos fórmico, acético, trifluoroacético e do grupo carboxilato no ânion formiato. Os efeitos dos grupos doador e sacador de elétrons na estabilização dos complexos radicalares foram evidenciados. Adicionalmente, pode-se atribuir um caráter covalente parcial em algumas ligações de hidrogênio.<br>The nature of hydrogen bonds and their influence on electronic structure of neutral, cationic, anionic, and radical complexes was studied by using geometric, energetic, electronic, and topological analysis. The changes in aromaticity of the pyrylium cation upon complexation with one up to three water molecules were investigated. The PCM (Polarizable Continuum Model) model was employed to study the pyrylium-water complexes in a water reaction medium. In addition, the effects of hydroxylation on electronic structure of the benzopyrylium and flavilium cations were also considered. In addition, the effects of strong hydrogen bonds on carboxyl group resonance in the complexes formed between the hydroperoxyl radical and formic, acetic, and trifluoroacetic acids were analyzed. In extension of this work, studies including complexes, obtained with and without geometric restrictions, provided information about the resonance of the carboxyl and carboxylate groups when the hydrogen fluoride interacts, linear or perpendicularly, with all atoms of formic acid and formate anion. The analysis of the wavefunction by using NBO (Natural Bond Orbital), NSA (Natural Steric Analysis), NRT (Natural Resonance Theory), and AIM (Atoms in Molecules) methods was necessary to the development of the above mentioned activities. The changes in geometric parameters and atomic charges were also considered. An energetic analysis of complexes was done with the energy decomposition method proposed by Xantheas. The vibrational frequencies and the intensity of the X-H (hydrogen bond donor group) stretching bands were studied. The spin densities for the radical complexes were also obtained. The Nucleus Independent Chemical Shifts (NICS), Harmonic Oscillator Model of Aromaticity (HOMA), HOSE (Harmonic Oscillator Stabilization Energy), and PDI (para-Delocalization Index) aromaticity criteria were employed to verify the hydrogen bond influence and the effect of hydroxylation in the aromaticity of the cations. The calculations were carried out by using B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p), B3LYP/6-311++G(3df,3pd), and UB3LYP/6-311++G(3df,3pd) models. Occasionally, other basis set (EPR-III and cc-pVDZ), as well as the MP2 method, were applied to test the accuracy of the results. The intermolecular interactions lead to small alterations in the electronic structure and aromaticity of pyrylium cation. Similarly, the substitution at different positions of the benzopyrylium and flavilium cations by a hydroxyl group does not cause significant changes in the electronic structure of these cations. However, a dependence of the hydroxyl group position on aromaticity was observed. On the other hand, for formic, acetic, trifluoroacetic acids, as well as for the formate anion, the resonance of the carboxyl and carboxylate groups is affected not only by the geometric distortions but also by the hydrogen bonds. The effects of the electron-donating and electron-withdrawing groups in the stabilization of radical complexes were characterized. Furthermore, a partial covalent character can be attributed to some hydrogen bonds.

Too often as teachers, we worry about doing too much for our students, lest we contribute to their dependency and fail to convey our confidence that they are capable of solving their own problems. However, especially for students who enter our classrooms full of mistrust, it is more important to convey our good intentions and trustworthiness, for example, by being “nice” and providing help in the many small instances when a helpful gesture, while unnecessary, would ease a student’s situation. Picking up a student’s dropped pencil, providing missing lunch money, or spending time talking with students about their interests are some of the many ways to convey caring and trustworthiness. Displaying affection, sharing our lives and inviting students to share their lives are also some of the many ways to build our students’ bonds of trust with us.

Employee Share Schemes provides a comprehensive examination of the taxation, legal and compliance issues concerning the acquisition of shares by employees in their employer company, whether public or private. Employees’ share schemes remain one of the most popular forms of rewarding and incentivising a company’s employees. The Government continues to believe that productivity will be increased by encouraging employee participation, which is evidenced by its commitment to public sector ‘mutualisations’ and, in the private sector, through such increased participation in employee share plans. With a detailed review of the key issues and techniques involved in establishing and operating share schemes, this practical guide includes worked examples to illustrate complex calculations and a useful series of precedents to assist with implementing and understanding the operation of each scheme. The clear advice given on the most common share schemes will help to ensure that plan rules are fully compliant with legislation. The ninth edition has been updated in line with the following developments: - Revisions to reflect UK legislation following BREXIT (Market Abuse Regulation, Prospectus Regulation and more) - Updates to the Company Share Option Plan to increase participation limits and to remove requirements in relation to types of share which can be used (and update precedent rules) - Finance (No 2) Bill 2023 - Updates to EMI legislation to remove requirements in relation to summary of restrictions in grant documentation and need for employee working time declaration - Finance (No 2) Bill 2023 - Changes to annual reporting obligations - New guidance from the Investment Association and other institutional investor 2023 guidance - HMRC updated guidance on discretions within EMI options - SAYE bonus rate changes (expected) - CGT allowance, income tax rates, dividend tax rates and NIC rates changes

How does Wall Street, that great bastion of American Capitalism, really work? This book provides the multifaceted answer to that question clearly, concisely, and on a practical level for anyone seeking to better understand the inner workings of the capital markets. Tracing the dealings of a fictional company from inception to maturity, The Wall Street Primer provides the reader with practical insights on Wall Street and its functions and operations. Written for professionals new to the industry, investors, job seekers, students, brokers and traders, and entrepreneurs and business executives, the book goes well beyond nice to know information. Instead, it will be, for many people, must have information about organizations, professions, and transactions that can help them make deals, get ahead in their careers, or better fund and build their businesses. Everybody has heard of Wall Street, but very few know anything about its institutions and processes. What is the buyside? Who works on the sellside? How do companies raise capital? Why do companies hire investment bankers? What is the difference between a mutual fund and a hedge fund? What is the process for selling a company? What does it take to go public and how is it done? The Wall Street Primer lifts the veil and answers these questions and many more. Besides covering financings and mergers and acquisitions, Pedersen illuminates the players involved. These include venture capitalists, private equity investors, public portfolio managers, activist shareholders, investment bankers, institutional salespeople and traders, and all those associated with their activities, like regulators, lawyers, and accountants. Along the way, readers learn about the offering and trading of stocks and bonds, what is involved in M&amp;A transactions, how technology is affecting the brokerage industry, what concerns institutional investors, and much more. Best, it's written by an insider who has seen both Wall Street's public face and its backroom dealings. Author and former investment banker and securities attorney Jason Pedersen searched for years for a book he could recommend to clients and professionals that contained practical information on how the pieces all fit together—who the players are, what they do, how they interact, and how, why, and when deals get done. But he never found that book and so decided to write it himself. The result is a fascinating look at how people navigate Wall Street—and wake up to find themselves living the American Dream.

AbstractTwo of the deadliest terrorist attacks committed in France—the 13 November 2015 Paris attacks and the 14 July 2016 attack in Nice—have sent unprecedented shockwaves throughout the country and been the subject of numerous commemorative practices ranging from spontaneous memorials to state-led projects such as the inauguration of a memorial-museum and a memorial garden in tribute to the victims. While inert memorials and public commemorative events have attracted vast public and media attention, individual affect-laden practices of remembrance have rarely been considered (e.g. Allen and Brown 2011). Little attention has also been paid to the role such embodied forms of memorialisation play in supporting bereaved families in finding meaning in their experiences of loss and coming to terms with grief. Based on phenomenological interviews with bereaved parents in the aftermath of terrorism in France, this chapter aims to expand our understanding of memorialisation beyond the traditional memorial space and argues that affective memory-making labour does not only contribute to the enduring remembrance of the lost loved one, but also presents a way of continuing bonds with the deceased as part of the individual grief process.

Abstract Drawing on new interviews with screenwriter John Patrick Shanley and producer Bonnie Palef, this chapter explores how the hit 1987 rom-com Moonstruck established Cage as a mainstream star and sex symbol, despite his ambivalence toward the film and reluctance to take the role. The chapter chronicles Cage’s unusual romantic chemistry with the much-older Cher, who plays his lover, and analyzes the significance of opera in the film: Moonstruck not only makes Cage’s character an opera lover and contains a critical sequence at the Metropolitan Opera, but the heightened emotions and gestures of the film—and of Cage’s performance in particular—reflect an operatic grandeur. Nonetheless, this chapter explains how Cage’s unhappiness with the film influenced him to gravitate toward darker, less commercial projects.

This chapter examines how the ex-colonials organized, what political influence they achieved, and why their efforts stalled. Anticipating elections, their leaders mounted social and cultural events with support from local politicians. These events maintained collective identity and social networks. They signaled a political potential and tightened bonds with local politicians. Similar models of patron-client arose in other Mediterranean cities (e.g., Aix-en-Provence, Marseille, Nice, Montpellier, Perpignan, and Toulouse). In the 1965 municipal elections, all parties in Toulon wooed the ex-colonials, who backed the moderate right. For the 1965 presidential and 1967 parliamentary elections, they sought to maintain their influence, but lost unity. The patron-client relations and electoral support that joined them to the moderate right would persist until the rise of the National Front in the 1990s.

If you use a reasonable adhesive such as superglue to stick some parts together, the “adhesion” doesn't just depend on the adhesive – it depends, first of all, on the test you apply to it. Testing peel, shear and butt joints gives totally different values, often differing by a factor of 1000s. This tells us that measuring the “real adhesion” is not just hard, it's impossible because adhesion is a property of the system. For example, you can change the strength of some types of bonds by changing the thickness of the bits you are sticking together. In other bonds, the strength increases as you decrease the thickness of the adhesive layer. For the lap shear joint, you can remove 60% of the adhesive with no change in strength, and, despite the name, the strength does not depend on the overlap and when it fails it does so in peel, not shear! This insistence that measured strength depends on the system isn't just nice theory – it's important in practice. Adhesive tapes are strong via polymers that are weak, your butt joint can fail from a slight mis-pull, a joint might fail from a change of material away from the bond.

Abstract Like most pests and game animals, rabbits (which are both) now have a distribution strongly influenced by man. The association extends back for thousands of years: bones near Nice show signs of slaughter by man as long as 120 000 years ago (Pages 1980). Many fossils from the upper Pliocene and Pleistocene of southern Europe from Britain to Italy, however, are suspect because the rabbits may have died after burrowing into older strata. Zeuner (1963) accepts only the upper Pleistocene records from Gibraltar and an early post-glacial record from southern France. Corbet (1986) considers the mid Pleistocene specimen from Kent consistent with similar finds in France and Spain, pointing to a rather more widespread distribution before the final glaciations. Three thousand years ago they seem to have been restricted to Spain, where Phoenicians recorded them as abundant about 1100 BC, and perhaps southern France (Beaucournu 1980). There is no good evidence that they were indigenous in North Africa (Barrett-Hamilton 1912; Beaucournu 1980; Corbet 1986). H0vvever, most genera of leporids except Lepus and Syh1ilagus have remarkably small, isolated distributions and the restriction of Oryctolagus to Spain is not unduly surprising.

“Endohedral metallofullerenes (EMFs)”, also known as metallofullerenes, are the hybrid molecules of spherical nanocarbons. The structure of EMFs consists of atomic metal(s) or metal-containing clusters enclosed inside the fullerenes. These unique EMFs have potential applications in various fields. Smalley and coworkers first reported the EMFs in 1985 [1], soon after C60 was discovered. In this chapter, we will discuss the computational studies carried out for the various types of EMFs and their potential role in industrial applications. Endohedral metallofullerenes M@C44 containing several different gap atoms of scandium and titanium family are experimentally detected. Dispersion-corrected DFT was carried out to study C44 and its fullerene derivatives to calculate the binding properties and interactions. Results showed that the computational and experimental studies agreed well with C44 and its endohedral compounds. Results predicted that C44 D2 (89) isomer is suitable for forming endohedral compounds. The binding affinity of the endohedral atom and its enclosure showed good profusion of these clusters. The DFT studies are used to study different characteristics of the doped C44-D2 (89) to the tri and tetra anions of empty C44-D2 clusters. These metal−cage bonds possess partial (ionic and covalent) interactions. The aromaticity of the cage is estimated with nucleus-independent chemical shift (NICS(0)), as it plays a vital role in balancing the endohedral species.

Carved out millions of years before mankind reached its coasts, the Mediterranean Sea became a ‘sea between the lands’ linking opposite shores once human beings traversed its surface in search of habitation, food or other vital resources. Early types of humans inhabited the lands bordering the Mediterranean 435,000 years before the present, to judge from evidence for a hunters’ camp set up near modern Rome; others built a simple hut out of branches at Terra Amata near Nice, and created a hearth in the middle of their dwelling – their diet included rhinoceros and elephant meat as well as deer, rabbits and wild pigs. When early man first ventured out across the sea’s waters is uncertain. In 2010, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens announced the discovery in Crete of quartz hand-axes dated to before 130,000 BC, indicating that early types of humans found some means to cross the sea, though these people may have been swept there unintentionally on storm debris. Discoveries in caves on Gibraltar prove that 24,000 years ago another species of human looked across the sea towards the mountain of Jebel Musa, clearly visible on the facing shore of Africa: the first Neanderthal bones ever discovered, in 1848, were those of a woman who lived in a cave on the side of the Rock of Gibraltar. Since the original finds were not immediately identified as the remains of a different human species, it was only when, eight years later, similar bones were unearthed in the Neander Valley in Germany that this species gained a name: Neanderthal Man should carry the name Gibraltar Woman. The Gibraltar Neanderthals made use of the sea that lapped the shores of their territory, for their diet included shellfish and crustaceans, even turtles and seals, though at this time a flat plain separated their rock caves from the sea. But there is no evidence for a Neanderthal population in Morocco, which was colonized by homo sapiens sapiens, our own branch of humanity. The Straits apparently kept the two populations apart.

Background: Chronic migraine is a neurological disorder described as refractory to preventive treatments. Based on the PREEMPT study, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the FDA approved, in 2010, the use of Botulinum Toxin type A (BoNT/A) to treat refractory chronic migraine. Objectives: To review the effectiveness of the use of BoNT/A in the treatment of refractory migraine. Methods: Bibliographic review based on PubMed database, using the descriptors “migraine” and “botulinum toxin”. Clinical trials, meta-analyzes and randomized controlled tests, from the last five years, were defined as inclusion criteria. Results: Sanz et al., (2016) infiltrated BoNT/A in 69 patients - mean age 43 years old, 88.4% women, mean infiltration rate was 2,0. The reduction of headache days and pain intensity was 48.5% and 20.5%, respectively, both statistically significant (p &lt;0.006). Ion et al., (2018) intervened 61 patients - mean age 50 years old, 87% women, mean infiltration of 3.5. 73% showed a reduction greater than 50% for the frequency of migraine episodes, 48% for headache days and 48% for drug use. Dodick et al., (2019) applied BoNT/A in 688 patients - 696 received placebo. The severity and frequency of pain showed a statistically significant reduction (p &lt; 0.001) after the first week of treatment in relation to the control group. Conclusions: The use of BoNT/A to treat refractory chronic migraine proves to be effective, although there is need for studies with larger samples to ensure its effectiveness.